PledgeMusic and Help Musicians launch Emerging Artists Fund for 2016/17

Help Musicians UK and PledgeMusic are pleased to announce the second year of the Emerging Artists Fund. This partnership launches a £75k talent development fund to benefit emerging artists.

From record deals to UK and international tours; the 2015 scheme was a springboard for success for artists including Telegram, Elf Kid, Fifi Rong, The Lottery Winners, Ryan Vail, Zola Blood and many more.
Targeting acts with a genuine ‘DIY’ drive to build a long-term career, the scheme will enable selected artists to run their own PledgeMusic campaign and to access a top-up grant from Help Musicians UK once they hit their funding target. The Emerging Artists Fund will run from November 2016 to November 2017, with three submission rounds in November-January, March-May and July-September. A panel of high profile tastemakers, music industry experts and previous winners will select artists/bands at each round.

All of the selected acts will generate revenue streams via their own PledgeMusic campaign, and if successful in reaching their goal, will receive additional funding from Help Musicians UK to invest in extra creative or promotional activity. This year’s scheme will offer more than just funding; there will be three showcases across the UK throughout the year, profiling artists selected from each round. We will compliment this with a mentoring scheme for the selected artists to meet with an industry expert from the panels and help further their careers.

The fund is open to all music genres and will prioritise emerging artists who aren’t currently receiving significant financial backing from third party sources (label, publishing etc.), but clearly at or nearing a career ‘tipping point’ with growing media interest, demonstrable live activity and an engaged fan base. The success and profile of the previous year has enabled the partnership to develop a new website to manage the application process but also to profile the showcases and news about the artists. Over the coming months, it will include inspirational videos and career tips from industry experts.

Claire Gevaux, Help Musicians UK’s Creative Programme Director says; “2015 was an incredible success for the diverse range of artists supported through our first Emerging Artists Fund. Working alongside PledgeMusic, we’re committing more funding in 2016 to help more musicians realise their ambitions, provide more showcase opportunities across the UK and access to experts in the sector.”

Speaking of the partnership, Paul Barton PledgeMusic UK MD says; “Following a very successful year 1 of the PledgeMusic/Help Musicians UK partnership, we are delighted to be joining forces together. Many of the artists from last year’s programme made significant achievements and progress in their careers – from Elf Kid’s support at Radio 1 and Beats 1, to the signing of The Lottery Winners by Seymour Stein’s Sire Records. I look forward to working with Help Musicians UK and helping many more acts through the Emerging Artists Fund.”

There are 3 application deadlines in 2016 and 2017. The first deadline is Wednesday 20th November 2016.